Page 29 of Their Darkest Needs

Ryan just messaged me saying they'll be here soon, so I quickly call Evy to check on her and to say how much I love her in case things go bad.

I hope she doesn’t pick up on the meaning of the conversation. I don't need my eight-months-pregnant wife to be worrying over this.

I also will not go down easily if it comes to it.

Ican’t believe it’s actually taking a walk with us. I mean at this point I just thought it might burn once the sun touched it or something like that. I guess not…

Taylor and Mara are walking ahead of me. I don’t trust it enough to make them go behind me. I mean, what if it would knock me out and kidnap her or something?

Taylor thinks this walk is to strengthen our bond, so ‘Mara’ and I would get along better. She couldn’t be more wrong.

“Isn’t this nice?” Taylor’s soft voice brings me back from my thoughts.

“What is, beautiful?” She giggles at the nickname I gave her and moves her hand in the air. “This! Us all together. Like a family.”Ah, I take back my previous statement.

This would be the most fucked up dysfunctional family there is.

“Sure thing, babe.” I smile up at her while she smiles back. She’s going to lose it once she finds out what we’re planning on doing. Which is why Felix brought an injection version of his tea with him.

I also don’t want her to see her friend die—well again, I guess. She might be scarred for life if we do. The only thing I just don’t get is why it hasn’t done anything yet? It has had multiple chances to kill us and it hasn’t taken any of them. Which means it needs something from us, I just don’t know what.

We’re almost done with the path we took to walk, and Taylor is already a bit tired, which worries me since she just got up. Maybe it’s just a side effect from the tea?

I grab my phone and quickly text Felix we’re on our way back to him.

Not long after, he sends me a K, which I’m guessing means all is done on his part.

The anxiety increases tenfold and I feel like throwing up from all the stress. I need this done fast, so I can finally enjoy my marriage with Taylor.

I can see the back door coming closer and closer, which is making my heart start pounding.

“You okay, baby?” Taylor grabs my hand. She’s smiling at me. She acts soft and innocent and not like herself at all. Her eyes are no longer their beautiful soft green but a darker colour, and her pupils are bigger than they should be.

“Everything is fine, my love. Why don’t you and Mara get in the living room while I get the food ready for us all?” Taylor looks confused for a second.

“Why can’t we wait in her room?” Is she kidding me right now? It’s really not the time to not listen to me.

“So you two can watch TV together, I—Felix got your favourite movie to watch.”Lies.

“Oh really? You want to watch The Notebook, Mara? It’s going to be just like old times.” She smiles at Mara while Mara obviously doesn’t answer her and just stares at her. There is a little pause and then Taylor starts again.

"Great! It’s going to be amazing!” she says afterwards. Did she just pretend to have a conversation with it? She might have been further gone than I thought.

I don’t say anything, though.

When we reach the door to go inside, Mara suddenly stops walking and Taylor pulls its arm. “What’s wrong, Mara? Why don’t we go inside?” It turns its head at me.

Our eyes link and I don’t dare move away.

Taylor pulls at its arm again. “Mara?”

That seems to pull her back from the freeze it had, and it slowly takes a foot inside of the house, looking unsure.

I think it knows something’s up, but I try not to show it. Its head is looking around, which I haven't really seen it do before. Is that a bad sign?

Taylor is either oblivious or chooses to be ignorant of its change in behaviour and just keeps talking to it about the movie while going into the living room, holding its hand. The thing looks at me before it goes inside and then completely turns rigid.

Felix snatches Taylor's arm, pushing her out of the room, making her fall. I grab her and hold her still while she struggles against me, and Felix quickly closes the salt circle before Mara is able to get out.

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